do-supportdo-support n
in English, use of the “dummy” auxiliary doto form questions or negatives
in sentences such as Do you want some tea?and He doesn’t want any tea,
respectively. Most of the world’s languages do not have a comparable
construction.
DOTE n
an abbreviation for Diploma for Overseas Teachers of English(UCLES).
Now replaced by DELTA.
doubled consonants n
see geminates
double negative n
a construction in which two negative words are used.
For example, in nonstandardEnglish
I neverseen nothing.
instead of
I haven’tseen anything.
A double-negative does not become a positive. It is used for emphasis.
double-object construction n
see dative alternation
downtoner n
a group of intensifiers that indicate a lessening of an aspect of meaning, such
as hardly, partially, slightly.
I am slightly deafin one ear.
drafting n
see composing processes
drill n
a technique commonly used in older methods of language teaching particu-
larly the audiolingual methodand used for practising sounds or sentence
patterns in a language, based on guided repetition or practice. A drill which
practises some aspect of grammar or sentence formation is often known as
pattern practice.
There are usually two parts to a drill.
aThe teacher provides a word or sentence as a stimulus (the call-wordor cue).
bStudents make various types of responses based on repetition, substitu-
tion, or transformation. For example: